The Atrocities of the Congo Free State Rubber Regime

When the Belgian King Leopold II acquired the Congo Free State during the Scramble for Africa in 1885, he claimed he was establishing the colony for humanitarian and scientific purposes, but in reality, its sole aim was profit, as much as possible, as fast as possible. The results of this rule were very uneven. Regions that were hard to access or lacked profitable resources escaped much of the violence that was to follow, but for those areas directly under the rule of the Free State or the companies it leased land to, the results were devastating. The Rubber Regime   Initially, government and commercial agents focused on acquiring ivory, but inventions, like the car, dramatically increased the demand for rubber.  Unfortunately, for the Congo, it was one of the only places in the world to have a large supply of wild rubber, and the government and its affiliated trading companies quickly shifted their focus to extracting the suddenly lucrative commodity. Company agents were paid large concessions on top of their salaries for the profits they generated, creating personal incentives to force people to work more and harder for little to no pay.  The only way to do that was through the use of terror. Atrocities In order to enforce the near impossible rubber quotas imposed on villages, agents and officials called on the Free State’s army, the Force Publique. This army was composed of white officers and African soldiers. Some of these soldiers were recruits, while others were slaves or orphans brought up to serve the colonial army. The army become known for its brutality, with the officers and soldiers being accused of  destroying villages, taking hostages, raping, torturing, and extorting the people. Men who did not fulfill their quota were killed or mutilated. They also sometimes eradicated  whole villages that failed to meet the quotas as a warning to others. Women and children were often taken hostage until men fulfilled a quota; during which time the women were raped repeatedly. The iconic images to emerge from this terror, though, were the baskets full of smoked hands and the Congolese children who survived ​having a hand cut off. A Hand for Every Bullet Belgian officers were afraid that the rank and file of the Force Publique would waste bullets, so they demanded a human hand for each bullet their soldiers used as proof that the killings had been done.  Soldiers were also reportedly promised their freedom or given other incentives for killing the most people as proven by supplying the most hands. Many people wonder why these soldiers were willing to do this to their ‘own’ people, but there was no sense of being ‘Congolese’. These men were generally from other parts of the Congo or other colonies entirely, and the orphans and slaves had often been brutalized themselves.  The Force Publique, no doubt, also attracted men who, for whatever reason, felt little compunction about wielding such violence, but this was true of the white officers as well. The vicious fighting and terror of the Congo Free State is better understood as another example of the incredible capacity of people for incomprehensible cruelty. Humanity and Reform The horrors, though, are only one part of the story. Amidst all of this, some of the best of people was also seen, in the bravery and resilience of ordinary Congolese men and women who resisted in small and large ways, and the passionate efforts of several American and European missionaries and activists to bring about reform.

Fred Meyer Organizational Structure Essay - 1235 Words

The Process of Fred Meyer’s Organizational Structure Selection MGT230 January 29, 2013 The Process of Fred Meyer’s Organizational Structure Selection Introduction According to Bateman and Snell, â€Å"Two fundamental concepts around which organizations are structured are differentiation and integration† (2011, pg. 227). Differentiation refers to the different units that work on different kinds of tasks with the use of different skills and work methods in an organization. These differentiated units are combinedand coordinated into an overallproduct for the purpose of achieving the organization’s mission as the result of integration. The two fundamental concepts indicate how the organization†¦show more content†¦Through the dozens of merchandise sections within these departments, the company is able to offer customers one-stop shopping convenience in addition to the company operating a dairy, bakery, kitchen, and photo plan. These functional approaches incorporate the fundamental concept of integration with combining and coordi nating products and services to offer the consumers one-stop shopping (Smith amp;Albaum, 2005). This type of marketing and operational strategiesprovides the company an advantage in multiple areas of business while contributing to the organization’s direction and mission. Fred Meyer’s organizational structures are effective in the company’s strategy of seeking competitiveness by enabling each department and each product division in response to the local competition with marketing and operational strategies. The position of the company is measuredby concepts of awareness, use, share, and competitive evaluation in determining the appropriate organizational structure to achieve the goals of the organization. This position of the company impacts the organizational functions in accordance to the organizational design and organizational structure. 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Jaws and Gothic Elements Free Essays

Gothic Elements In Jaws In June of 1995, Director Steven Spielberg released a terrifying thriller called Jaws. In this film a gigantic great white shark terrorizes a small island, which is solely dependent on its beach for revenue. This movie was so scary because it is much more likely happen, unlike a zombie apocalypse or alien attack. We will write a custom essay sample on Jaws and Gothic Elements or any similar topic only for you Order Now People were so afraid of shark attacks they stayed far away from the beaches. Spielberg used gothic elements in his movie Jaws. The way he used them scared and still scares people today. The scene I chose is where Hooper finds Ben Gardener’s sunken boat. Leading up to this scene Hooper and Broody are on Hoper’s boat and Hooper is going to dive into the water to search for the elusive shark. When Hooper dives he diving by a Ben Gardener’s shark ravaged boat. One of the gothic elements Spielberg used In this scene was his choice of music and how he used it to set up the scene. For example, when Hooper started to approach the boat. The music got more intense and right when a human head pops out from the hole in the boat the music stops and it makes it very climatic because you were expecting the shark to come and attack him but instead a scary head pops out from the hole in the boat. Spielberg makes you think that the shark is going to attack Hooper because Hooper finds a huge shark tooth in the side of the boat. So when the music stops and the head pops out it is very surprising and scary. Another gothic element is the camera angle during this scene. The camera Is positioned directly behind Hooper, as he Is scuba diving around the wreckage of the ship. This gives you the feeling of being right there with Hooper and makes you feel claustrophobic because there Is nowhere else to look the right over his shoulder. This sakes the scene so much more scary and intense. Other horror elements are the lighting, props, and makeup. Spielberg made the lighting very dim and spooky. He did this on purpose because the scene was supposed to be a creepy scene. It made it harder to make out what was going on. The prop head that was used during this scene had a very creepy makeup done on it. The head was made to look like it was under there for a little bit and it was Just starting to decompose, which made it scary. Spielberg knew exactly what he was doing with this film. His use of gothic elements made it the extremely popular thriller It was. Without these elements the vie has no chill factor and would not be as successful as It was and still Is today. Jaws and Gothic Elements By Emily Gothic Elements in Jaws One of the gothic elements Spielberg used in this scene was his choice of music and Another gothic element is the camera angle during this scene. The camera is positioned directly behind Hooper, as he is scuba diving around the wreckage of the claustrophobic because there is nowhere else to look the right over his shoulder. This elements made it the extremely popular thriller it was. Without these elements the movie has no chill factor and would not be as successful as it was and still is today. How to cite Jaws and Gothic Elements, Papers

Leadership Styles in Professional Nursing free essay sample

According to Hood (as cited in Agnes, 2005) â€Å"Leadership is defined as a process of influencing others or guiding or directing others to attain mutually agreed upon goals† (p. 457). This paper will describe four different leadership styles, and the effectiveness of each style as dependent upon the situation. Review of the Professional Nursing Literature All nurses are leaders but may not recognize the different types of leadership or traits of an effective leader (Sims, 2009). There are four leadership styles to consider, the first one is autocratic or authoritarian. The autocratic leader is someone who usually needs to dominate others. The autocratic approach is often one-sided and the leader is likely attempting to achieve a single goal or objective (Sims, 2009). Autocratic leadership is a behavior in which a leader makes choices with no involvement from any peers, regardless if those ideas are better suited for the organization. This type of leader requires constant pressure and direction to get the task done. We will write a custom essay sample on Leadership Styles in Professional Nursing or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This type of leader provides clear expectations for what, when, and how a process should be done without consulting employees. Organizations that have this type of leader tend to see a high turn-over of employees and absenteeism for the simple fact that employees don’t feel valued. This approach would not be the way to get the best performance from the team. The implementation of this style of leadership could be used in a situation where an immediate decision needs to be made such as a crisis in an emergency room. The second leadership style is democratic or participative. This style is one that encourages employees to be a part of the decision making process. This type of leader keeps employees informed about everything that affects the work being done, and shares in the problem solving situation. A drawback of this type of leader is that the leader could be viewed as not being able to make a decision; therefore, the employees may not respect this style and view this leader as not being a true leader. The democratic leader uses the team approach and is the coach in the process, but has the final say when the group comes to a consensus. Implementation of a democratic leadership style can best be executed in a situation where a process or practice change is needed, such as documentation on electronic medical records. With this leadership style the leader can get staff ideas and suggestions for a smooth transition to the change. This not only increases job satisfaction by involving team members, but it also helps to develop people’s skills. This method inspires a group effort, but it can take lots of time for the leader to develop and come to an end to the topic at hand (Sims, 2009). The leader may spend a lot of time in discussions, sending emails, or scheduling meetings. This leader may be happy to do this to see that staff are working together to achieve a better outcome, but it can also be a time-consuming process. A good democratic leader encourages staff participation, is supportive, but never loses sight that the leader is the one responsible for the final decision. This leader must accept that the outcome may turn out differently than originally planned. Transactional leadership is the third style, and is one where the leader focuses on the day to day tasks of the team, and makes sure that the work is completed. Transactional leadership is really a type of management, not a true leader style, because the focus is on short-term tasks. Transactional leaders set a goal, provide directions, and then reward the employee if performance is met at an acceptable level (McGuire Kennerly, 2006). Transactional leadership style can best be used when a state survey is taking place and if successful, then reward will be given to the employees. These leaders use this style to get the desired outcomes. Transactional leaders give tasks to be done by the employee, and if it’s done wrong then the employee is accountable. If the task is completed to this leader’s standard, then the employee is rewarded. This type of leader doesn’t focus on the staff’s needs, or personal development, instead the staff must adhere to what the leader wants. Transactional leaders often work under the assumption that if everything is working fine, then there is no need to fix anything. Under this type of leader, there is no interest in change, and the employee will not feel any job satisfaction. The fourth leadership style is the transformational leader. This style of leadership is one that’s very appropriate in many corporate situations because of the wide range of abilities and approaches that are drawn upon. This style focuses on the leader and the employee working together for a common goal. This type of leader has a vision for the organization, and inspires employees to solve problems creatively in a way that provides support and encouragement without diminishing the nursing role (Kleinman, 2004). Transformational leaders have several traits that inspire the employee to utilize the strengths to improve the team, have better staff satisfaction, and reduce stress (Weberg, 2010). Transformational leaders are coaches, or mentors; they show respect, have empathy, and utilize individual leader skills to promote change. These leaders are very energetic and passionate about the job, and concerned about all staff in succeeding. These leaders set good examples, clear goals, and recognizes good work from the team. Transformational leaders should remain a part of the team and share in the work load to better understand the team’s viewpoint. With this leader style, there is a higher level of committed employees, reduced stress, and increased morale (Dunham Klafehn, 1990). This in turn creates an employee who will provide a positive outlook when change is taking place and increases employee job satisfaction. Application of Clinical Example A clinical example of when transformational leader style would work best is when an organization is going through a change process, such as the way report is given. Transformational leaders motivate staff to work towards a greater good and create a positive change (Dunham Klafehn, 1990). Many nurses don’t like change in the way care is provided, but when it’s important for patient safety change is inevitable.